Michael van Gerwen's bid to win a fourth World Grand Prix title in six years has fallen short after the world no.1 was eliminated in the first round in Ireland.
The Dutchman lost to Scotsman John Henderson 2-1 in front of a sell-out crowd in Dublin.
Henderson won a tightly contested first set 3-2, but it was a different story in the second as the defending champion found form to win 3-0.
In the third, the current world champion struggled with his accuracy but managed to force a deciding - winner takes all leg.
'MVG' had three darts to hit a 117 check-out but failed to find a treble as Henderson hit 52 to claim his first win over the 28-year-old in eight encounters.
After winning three of the first four major tournaments in 2017, van Gerwen has found himself in a slump, having failed to win the last three he has competed in.
With van Gerwen out, the tournament is wide open as Phil Taylor and Gary Anderson are both not competing, while Adrian Lewis was eliminated by Daryl Gurney on the first day of action.
Other results saw Raymond van Barneveld ease past Auckland Darts Masters champion Kyle Anderson 2-0, Dave Chisnall beat Jelle Klaasen 2-0, while Robert Thornton overcame Kim Huybrechts 2-1.
Steve Beaton Alan Norris and Joe Cullen also picked up wins.
Newshub.
